A year ago, Sean O’Malley was out of the top 10 bantamweight rankings and preparing for a duel with Petr Yan. The American was not taken seriously and was considered only as the next step for the Russian, who was then the first number in the division and wanted to return to the winning streak.
We remember the outcome. It was a close fight, and many still had arbitration questions, but then Sean proved that everyone would have to count on him. Now Aljamain Sterling, who hadn’t lost for six years before meeting Sugar, was convinced of it.
The main word that characterizes O’Malley’s style is surprise. The American uses a large number of the most diverse and complex combinations, which makes any opponent very nervous. Sean has very erratic pace, great footwork and is constantly changing the direction of his attacks. As a result, this leads to the fact that the opponents simply begin to follow any feint and miss strong blows.
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In the UFC, few people operate in this style, and in the bantamweight division there are no such fighters. For example, Sterling complained that he couldn’t find the perfect sparring partner, and after the fight he admitted that he still underestimated the new champion: “His footwork turned out to be better than he expected. In camp I tried to work on it, I wanted my partner to copy that move against me. I know how difficult it is to work against this style, because I myself like to change direction, to move from one side to the other.
Another aspect is an excellent striking technique and the ability to effectively use the superiority in size. Sean is a lanky guy who doesn’t look like an athlete at first glance, but he does a great job in a classic boxing style. As noted above, O’Malley has great footwork, but on top of that, he has great speed and great momentum. Sugar hits very quickly and accurately, and if at the same time you add feints, then it becomes impossible to react to attacks. Lots of high speed leg and arm work set up near perfection. As a rule, O’Malley works with jabs and straights, but when the opponent concentrates on blocking these punches, a long hook arrives that avoids the block. This is possible thanks to Sean’s anthropometry. At the same time, excellent manual work is combined with a variety of kicks. Sugar is a good shot to both the legs and the body and he lands those shots well in combination with fastballs and crosses.
It’s worth noting that the new UFC champion has always used this style and regularly works to improve it. Even with an increase in the level of opposition, the American does not give up tricks. Impressive and the power of blows. We have repeatedly seen spectacular one-punch knockouts from this fighter. In principle, one of these made his way to the UFC. However, as the fight with Sterling demonstrated, Sean may well choose a more cautious game plan. In the title he showed restraint and discipline and punished Aljo for the first serious mistake.
O’Malley’s main defense is, again, his ability to harness anthropometry. He is excellent at controlling distance with a jab and in some cases scares opponents away with front kicks. If he’s actively pressured, there are always dangerous knees that Sean can use on a jump. O’Malley doesn’t like to get close to opponents, this is one of his weaknesses, so he prefers to work at medium and long distance. In this position, he doesn’t have to hold a high block, and works more in a pure boxing style on shuttles and quickdraws. Of course, Sean can have problems with the drums, but in that aspect he is very good.
Recall O’Malley’s fight with Petr Yan:
Ian missed in the standing position: O’Malley beat better. Peter’s defense was like a sieve.
We didn’t really see O’Malley in action. Peter Yan tried translating it, but got virtually no dividend. The American has good jiu-jitsu, he effectively blocks the opponent’s attempts to go down and punch. At the same time, he has not, in fact, been field tested by fighters who can perform more effectively on the ground than Jan. Perhaps Sterling would have given Sean a lot more trouble if he had gone all the way to the takedown. But the former champion hurried: “I was not disciplined because I did not want to have a boring fight. It was possible to stay long distance and throw more low kicks, but he didn’t want to hear all this criticism later. And he was disciplined. He wanted to put on a brilliant fight… I was wrong, he punished.
In general, O’Malley himself was aware that he could lose if he was on the ground. This was said more than once in interviews before the fight. Even after the fight, he admitted that he was nervous precisely because of Sterling’s ability to fight his opponents.
Now O’Malley wants a fight with Marlon Vera, and given the UFC’s loyalty to Sugar, he very well could get it. There, Sean can again take advantage of his strengths, since he will not be translated. So, we are waiting for the continuation of Sean O’Malley’s show.
